Tampering with the absurd genre: the translation of Waiting for Godot as an example

Abstract

This study, which follows the analytical, comparative and qualitative methodologies, investigates the translation of stage direction signs in Samuel Beckett’s Waiting for Godot into Arabic. The article, a close analysis of the nonverbal signs, explains the relevance of these semiotics and their thematic functions, and compares them with those of Fayez Iskandar’s translation of the play text. The researchers assess Iskandar’s translation outcomes, identify and classify the effectiveness of the translation methods, employed by Iskandar, in maintaining the dysfunctional sign system and the incongruous relations within the play.